Butler backs young Bangladesh to be ‘brave and bold’ against Uzbekistan

Bangladesh will face Uzbekistan in their final AFC Women’s Asian Cup Group B tie at the Perth Rectangular Stadium on Monday. 

Consecutive defeats have left both sides’ hopes hanging by a thread, but victory will give them a fighting chance to advance as one of the two best third-placed teams from the three groups. 

Debutants Bangladesh’s inexperience at this level was evident in their earlier matches -- restricting defending champions China to a 2-0 win in the opening game before succumbing 5-0 to North Korea. On the eve of the final group match, Bangladesh coach Peter Butler spoke at the pre-match press briefing in Perth today. 

Here are excerpts from the press conference: 

Question (Q): On how he prepared the team for tomorrow's match.

Peter Butler (PB): We've had a bit of a rude awakening, which in a positive sense is a real positive, coming into this tournament. We've had some good moments. I think the game is all about good moments and indifferent ones -- it's a learning curve. And we're here today to play Uzbekistan tomorrow. I know very well it'll be a tough game depending on how they set up and how they go about it. Whether they're going to play in a low block and play defensively, or whether they'll come out and press. I know what we'll do, and hopefully with the preparation we’ve had, it will put us in good stead. Every day is a learning day, every day is a learning curve. We're going to have an average age of 19 and a half. We go into the next game full of optimism and at the same time somewhat guarded.  As you know, we are playing here for the first time, so we have nothing to lose. We have had two good games which we learned a lot from, and we want to finish against Uzbekistan with hope and take something good from here.

Q: On International Women’s Day and how he sees women's football in Bangladesh.

PB: That's a great question. I'm really proud. I've coached national men's teams for eight years in Africa, and Africa is a little bit similar to Bangladesh in many social ways -- everyone has a story to tell. I've always been a big believer in supporting and helping women's rights, standing up for women. I know a lot of people don't like it when I do, but I put my neck on the line. I had 18 girls at one stage go on strike against me. I understand that, and I don't hold any malice or regret for what I did. I was doing it for the good of the game and the young girls and the women in the group. So if you ask me about supporting women, I'm proud of coaching this group. I'm proud of the journey we've embarked on. I'm proud of what we've done -- not I, I'd rather use the ‘we’ than the ‘I’. I think we've come a long way. We've hit a few speed bumps in the road. But I'm really proud, even though we might not win the game. That's not the point -- that's not why we're here. Of course, we want to win because of the competitive nature that lies within us. But I really believe in what we've done, not just myself but collectively, in terms of trying to support the girls -- player welfare, fighting for better conditions, living conditions, training conditions, food and nutrition.

Q: On the historic aspect, as a win tomorrow would give Bangladesh a chance of qualifying for the Asian Cup quarterfinals, Olympic qualifiers, and the World Cup.

PB: Tomorrow is a milestone for Bangladesh football and we will go there to win and give our best. Uzbekistan are very strong, powerful athletes. They have a certain style of play. But I think our technical ability and our ability to keep the ball can cause them problems. We've got to be brave, we've got to be bold. Ranking is one thing [FIFA rankings show Uzbekistan at 49th, far above Bangladesh’s 112th] , but when you go on that pitch it's 11 vs 11. I believe in this group. They have come through so much.